Switch-operating attachment for cars.



No. 637,!55. Patented Nov. I4, 1899.

s. PARSON.

SWITCH OPERATING ATTACHMENT FDR CABS.

(Application filed Sept. 27, 1899.)

(No Model.)

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFI E...

SWAN PARSON, OF NEW BRITAIN, CONNECTICUT;

SWITCH-OPERATING ATTACHMENT FOR CARS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 637,155, dated November 14, 1899.

Application filed $epteni'ber 27,1899. Serial No. 731,810. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, SWAN PARSON, of New Britain, in the county of Hartford and State of Connecticut, have invented a new and Improved Switch Operating Attachment for Cars, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

My invention relates to a switch-operating attachment for cars, and has for its object to provide a device which will be simple in construction and effective in operation and which will positively throw a switch-tongue over from one side to the other and guide the switch-tongue in such movement 'during a comparatively long time.

The invention will be fully described hereinafter and the features of novelty pointed out in the appended claims.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, in which similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in both the figures.

Figure l is an elevation with parts in section, showing a portion of a track and of a car provided with my improved attachment; and Fig. 2 is an inverted plan view of the switch-operating attachment.

Adesignates a track-rail,and A the switchtongue,pivoted at A and provided with a projection A adapted to be engaged by the switch operating attachment on the car.

Through the bottom 13 of the car, adjacent to the dashboard B, extends a vertically-sliding rod C, held against turning by any suitable means, such as by making said rod angular where it passes through the bottom of the car, and carrying at its top a foot-plate C, adapted to be operated by the motorman. The rod C is normally keptin an upper position by a spring D, which bears, respectively, against a bracket E, secured to the bottom of the car, and against a collar on the rod.

At the lower end of the rod C is secured my improved switch-operating attachment. This attachment consists of two blocks F, projecting at opposite sides of a plate F and having their inner edges F converged toward the rear of the car. The said edges, however, do not meet, but are spaced, and at the rear ends of the blocks or projections F a depression F is provided, in which depression are adapted to swing two fingers G, pivoted at G and normally pressed forward against the front wall of the depression F by springs H; The forward edges of said fingers are practically straight. In the rear of the depression F is located a wedge-shaped central projection F, the point of said projection being substantially at that point where the converging edges F of the blocks F would intersect if continued backward. The edges of the said projection are preferably rounded, and it will be observed that the edges F practically form tangents to the edges of the projection F, at the forward end thereof. The lower surfaces of the projections F F and of the fingers G are practically in the same plane.

The operation is as follows: When the attachment is in the elevated position illustrated in Fig. 1, it will of course not engage the'projection A of the switch-tongue A, and therefore the switch will remain in its position. When it is desired to throw the switch, the motorman depresses the rod 0-,

with the attachment F, and the projection A of the switch-tongue will then engage the oblique edge F of one or the other of the projections F. Let us assume that the projection A engages the edge F of the block F. (Shown at the top of Fig. It will be obvious that the oblique edge will throw the switch toward the central position until the projection A comes in engagement with the spring-pressed finger G. This finger will then be pressed back until it assumes the position indicated by dotted lines in Fig. 2, whereby a practically continuous guide for the projection A of the switch-tongue is formed by the upper oblique edge F the upper finger G, and the lower edge of the projection F It will be seen that the switch-tongue is thus gradually thrown off from one side to the other and is perfectly guided during such movement, which takes place not suddenly, but progressively. .Of course it will be understood that if the finger G were engaged by the projection A of the switch-tongue the operation would be similar, only the switchtongue would be thrown in the opposite di rection.

It will be obvious that the device will change the position of the switch-tongue from left to right or right to left without any difference in the manipulation. Further, should the switch be at approximately a central position, so that the projection A will not engage the oblique edge F the device will still be freely operative, as the switch will in that case be thrown over by a finger G and the projection F*. It will be seen that in their normal position the two fingers G point forwardly at their ends and so close together as to make it perfectlyimpossible for the device to fail in action even if the switch-tongue should by mistake be in the central position.

Having thus described my invention, 1 claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent- 1. A switch-operating attachment for cars, comprising blocks or guides having obliquelyarranged converging edges, a pointed guide located in the rear of the said oblique guides, with its point approximately at the intersection of said oblique edges, and pivoted fingers arranged between the said pointed guide and the converging ends of the oblique guides, sub stantially as described.

2. A switch-operating attachment for cars,

comprising guide-blocks provided with converging oblique edges, spring-pressed guidefingers at the converging ends of said edges, and a central guide arranged in the rear of the said oblique guides adjacent to the path of the said spring-pressed fingers, substan tially as described.

3. A switch-operating attachment for cars, 

